COUPSMART BLOG

Posts Tagged ‘Facebook’

If you’re using the web then I guarantee you’ve been prompted with the opportunity to deposit your personal information by means of a form. It’s a way for companies to learn a little bit about you, and to have a way to connect with you down the road. In contrast to this approach, we provide our clients with rich data about their customers using our application for Facebook.

However, we’ve had a few inquiries from clients regarding the methodology we use to collect data through our Facebook application. Some are under the impression that by asking their customers to accept our permissions, it’s causing them to abandon the process altogether. Fearful of the misconception that potential customers are in jeopardy, they might claim that form fields are a superior alternative.

Are they right? Could a Facebook app be scaring away all of their customers?

It came to my attention that we are not the only ones who have had clients voice concern on this issue. AgoraPulse experienced customer concerns similar to our own, so they pulled their app data to investigate. Specifically, they were looking to compare forms to Facebook applications, and how conversion rates varied between the two.

The comparisons were made across three different campaigns: Sweepstakes, Instant Win, and Fan Vote. The Instant Win category in particular had a noteworthy turnout of over 24,000 visitors, and the results showed that the Facebook app conversion rate was 88.3%, while the form field had a completion rate of only 27.3%. At CoupSmart, we average a 92% opt-in rate for high value coupon offers.

Furthermore, in the 2014 Formstack Form Conversion Report, they calculated the percent of successfully submitted forms for the top industries that use their service. On the list included “Small Business”, with an average form conversion rate of 13%, as well as “Marketing/Consulting”, averaging at only 7%.

Still concerned that using a Facebook app will drive away potential customers?

A conversion rate of 100% is unrealistic. That being said, there are many reasons why Facebook app authorization, although not perfect, is still the ideal option.

It’s an easier and less time consuming alternative. Customers literally click a button and avoid the grief of having to fill out a questionnaire.

The information you collect is more likely to be legitimate, as opposed to a form where someone can easily submit inaccurate/false information.

You will collect a lot more information. Every question in a form pushes you further and further away from the likelihood that a customer will actually complete the form. But through the application on Facebook, you can list out what information users are giving you access to before they give their permission.

They are already on social media, so there’s a much greater likelihood that they will share their experience with people in their network.

So what can be done to ensure that you get the best results?

Less is more.
At CoupSmart, we only ask for data that is absolutely needed. By requesting less information, a customer is more likely to follow through.

You’re not (or at least hopefully not) using their data in a malicious manner. As discussed in my previous blog, consumer data is mutually beneficial to both parties. So make sure that your intentions are transparent, and you will give the consumer the confidence they need to provide the data you are looking for.

Social media is no longer a “young man’s game”. Moms, businessmen, teachers, mailmen… they use it, and I’d be willing to bet that you’re using some form of social media too. And with a little information, it wouldn’t be difficult to pinpoint exactly which ones you use, and how much time you spend interacting with them.

Daniel Keys Moran once said, “You can have data without information, but you cannot have information without data”. Furthermore, with the right data, you can have access to powerful information. So where can you find the right data? Social media.

Collectively, there are many benefits to using social media.

It offers a channel for you to stay connected to your audience

It provides validation

It builds awareness

It effectively pulls in traffic and increases your exposure

It contains valuable insights about your audience

That being said, each platform is functionally unique and is used by different people to accomplish different objectives. The key is to identify which platforms are most applicable to you. Having a social media account is not enough. Be active, and make sure you are using each one in it’s full potential. Check out the figures below and use the data to start optimizing your social activity.

What kind of coupons do you use? Where do you get them? For years, a common method to claiming a coupon has been Free Standing Inserts, a deal that can be found in newspapers or magazines. For many companies, this has been an adequate approach for offering deals and promotions to consumers. As our world continues to evolve, however, so has this approach. One tool that has become increasingly purposeful is social media. It now has much more to offer than your friends’ spring break photos and ever-recurrent status updates. In fact, utilizing social media to push promotions is quickly becoming the unparalleled methodology for incentivizing and engaging customers.

A mutually beneficial social opportunityWhen it comes to social media, every fan and follower you have should be viewed as a potential customer. Why? Because, according to Nielsen, “The top reason for following or liking a brand, company or celebrity in social networking sites is to receive discounts and special offers.”

Facebook, in particular, is a great platform to successfully accomplish this. Studies show that 79% of Facebook users will “like” a company page just to receive deals and promotions according to MarketForce. A very similar outcome was found in a survey by Compete, who revealed the top reasons why Twitter users follow a brand. The number one reason (at 94%) was to receive discounts and promos.

Social coupons FTWThe benefits to using social media platforms are multi-faceted, and can propose many advantages to the company and it’s customers.

Motivate purchases and increase your sales revenue

Boosting your fan page and/or number of followers

Raising your brand awareness

Facilitating customer engagement and interaction

To get the most out of your social marketing campaigns, you can use CoupSmart’s services to deliver content that goes beyond engagement. We not only help you distribute social coupons effectively, but most importantly, we help you learn more about your customers by capturing psychographic and demographic data. By doing so, you can easily turn your fans into customers, and then use the collected data to retarget a particular sample of customers, or even engage them individually.

Last thursday, Sean and I discussed the nuances of Facebook’s new News Feed, the benefits of having a visual presence on social media, and the potential rise of video ads in Facebook. Take a look:

Not quite being done with hearing ourselves talk, we had a follow-up discussion about how social media networks are (or are not) battling for the same viewership. We affectionately called this one War of The Social Networks: